suc . . . er, I mean: contemplate this, Clinton & McCain

 * Cuba dissidents back Obama pledge *
A group of Cuban dissidents backs a call by Barack Obama for direct talks with Cuban President Raul Castro.

Full story at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/-/2/hi/americas/7418941.stm

Clockwork Phoenix reviewed!

 
Over at his Bibliophile Stalker blog, Charles Tan has posted a very favourable review of the anthology Clockwork Phoenix (edited by Mike Allen 
[time_shark], published by Norilana Books [norilanabooks]). Here's an extract:

. . . stellar cast of contributing authors. . . . Eighteen stories all in all and one element I found in common among all the stories is that they were comfortable to read, usually going for an elegant and minimalist writing style rather than verbose, choking paragraphs. A recurring theme of this anthology is that it attempts to evoke the reader's sense of wonder.

Here are the top three stories that caught my attention: John Grant's "All The Little Gods We Are" utilizes various techniques to dissect our protagonist and he does an effective job at characterization. And while he uses an old science-fiction/fantasy trope, his execution is excellent and gives it his own twist in the end. Ekaterina Sedia's "There is A Monster Under Helen's Bed" delves into horror of various sorts but combines it with beautiful prose and even a wondrous scene or two. "Oblivion: A Journey" by Vandana Singh gives us a science-fiction mini-epic that while predictable, was an enjoyable read nonetheless as the author infuses it with Indian influences.

You can read the full review at http://charles-tan.blogspot.com/2008/05/book-review-clockwork-phoenix-edited-by.html. Charles has posted really a bundle of his perceptive reviews on Bibliophile Stalker (three new ones today alone!), so it's worth spending a bit of time trawling around the blog for others.